A thrilling and engrossing epic war film

Rating: Null/10 (25 August 2015)

A largely historically accurate account of D-Day, one of the most important single days of the 20th Century, this is a thrilling and engrossing epic war film of a kind which is sadly not made anymore. Based on the 1959 book of the same name by Cornelius Ryan, it is a stirring tribute to the resourcefulness and bravery of the Allied strategists and combatants who ensured that Operation Overlord was a success. While it only covers the events leading up to the invasion and those of June 6, 1944 itself as to opposed to the rest of the campaign, there is a sense of "a lot done, more to do" as the film draws to a close. The film may be over but the war certainly isn't.
The film benefits from a very strong script and is extremely well directed by all concerned in both the quieter character scenes and the wonderfully shot battle scenes. In spite of its multiple directors, the tone of the film is very consistent and, had I not known already from my previous viewing, I would assumed that there had only been one director. The fact that all of the German and French characters speak their own languages rather than English also gives the film a great sense of authenticity. The film is extremely well paced and there was not a minute where I was bored. On the Allied side, D-Day was chiefly depicted from the British and American perspectives but I did like that there was an acknowledgement of some of the other forces involved such as the Canadians, the Free French and the Free Polish. Still, they could have done more with it.
There is a terrific sense of tension in the early scenes in which the Allied Forces are waiting to receive the word from General Eisenhower to launch the invasion in spite of the worst weather in the English Channel in 20 years. Eventually, it is decided to give the order as the conditions were unlikely to improve any time soon. There was talk of Eisenhower playing himself in the film but it was decided that he looked too old. The same was true of David Niven. I can't say that I'd really have cared in either case! The prelude to the invasion is also examined from the German perspective with Field Marshals Erwin Rommel and Gerd von Rundstedt, played very well by Werner Hinz and Paul Hartmann respectively, being dismissive of the prospects of invasion due to the poor weather conditions and are consequently caught unawares when it does come. On the German side, the strongest response to the invasion comes from Generals Max Pemsel and Günther Blumentritt, both of whom served as consultants on the film as did Frau Rommel, among others. They were also lucky enough to be played by the two best German actors in the film: Wolfgang Preiss and Curd Jürgens. Preiss later played von Rundstedt himself in "A Bridge Too Far", incidentally.
The film has a very big cast which reads like a "Who's Who" of 1960s male film stars and almost all of them get a chance to shine. Richard Burton has a great cameo as the RAF pilot David Campbell, distraught at the death of the only other remaining member of his squadron from the Battle of Britain. He later turns up towards the end of the film after being shot down the previous night. Richard Beymer plays a cocky young private named Dutch Schultz who wins $2,500 gambling as he is waiting to be deployed. However, he has the reality of the situation brought home when he receives rosary beads from his mother. Cast against type, Red Buttons is excellent as Private John Steele, who was trapped on the church tower of Sainte-Mère-Église after his parachute became caught. Robert Mitchum has one of the more substantial roles in terms of screen time as General Norman Cota and gives a great performance as a general who cares about all of the men under his command. Henry Fonda, my favourite actor in the film, has a smaller role as General Teddy Roosevelt, Jr., who lead his troops onto Utah Beach in spite of his severe arthritis and died of a heart attack the following month. Jeffrey Hunter is very good as Sgt. (later Lt.) John H. Fuller, who does not survive the day sadly.
At 55, John Wayne, who probably had the biggest role overall, was twice as old as his character Colonel Benjamin Vandervoort was on D-Day but he is nevertheless more suited to the role than he was to that of Genghis Khan in "The Conqueror", the last film that I saw him in. He was certainly not a very good actor but he had a likable screen presence in most of his films and this one was no different. That said, the anguish on his face when he sees the bodies of parachutists who were shot down while attempting to land in Sainte-Mère-Église was the best acting that I have ever seen from him. In a case of art imitating life, D-Day veteran Richard Todd plays his erstwhile superior officer Major John Howard and took part in the assault on Pegasus Bridge as he did in reality. Other than those actors that I have already mentioned, I was impressed by Richard Münch as General Ernst Marcks (who turned 53 on D-Day but did not have a great birthday), Eddie Albert, Sal Mineo, Hans Christian Blech, Peter van Eyck, Roddy McDowall, Mel Ferrer, Rod Steiger, Edmond O'Brien, Kenneth More, Peter Lawford, Sean Connery, Robert Wagner, Georges Wilson, André Bourvil and Irina Demick, who has the best role of any woman in the film as the French Resistance member Janine Boitard.
Overall, this is an excellent war film which was deservedly nominated for Best Picture. It may not be on quite the same level as its companion piece "A Bridge Too Far" but it's not far behind either.